The invention relates to a bill receiving/dispensing machine (for example, an ATM used by banking organs or the like), from and to which general users make use of cards, passbooks, or the like to directly receive and pay cash, and more particularly, to a bill receiving/dispensing box used for return-type bill receiving/dispensing machines, in which received bills are used as bills being dispensed.
Conventionally, in bill receiving/dispensing machines for return-type ATMs used in banking organs or the like, vertical-type bill receiving/dispensing boxes are commonly employed to be placed at the services of storage of received bills, delivery of bills being paid, automatic recovery of bills from the machine, automatic recovery of bills from the machine, automatic charging of bills to the machine, automatic inspection for determining cash remaining in the machine, or the like. Meanwhile, there has been proposed a system, in which horizontal-type bill receiving/dispensing boxes are stacked in a plurality of stages on account of an advantage that an entire installation can be composed of a relatively simple conveying system and bill receiving/dispensing boxes can be increased in number without a change is installation area.
For example, Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication No. 18807/1998 shows a construction of a bill receiving/dispensing machine, which employs horizontal bill receiving/dispensing boxes.
As ATMs or the like have spread, there has been an increasing demand for bill receiving/dispensing machines, which are smaller in size, lower in cost, and easier of use while ensuring conventional functions and performance. Meanwhile, as foreign bills have been increasingly accepted in Japan and there has been an increasing demand for bill receiving/dispensing machines in foreign countries, an installation capable of handling not only Japanese Yen bills but also foreign bills has been demanded.
For the purposes of simplification of a mechanism for smaller size and lower cost and enhancement of reliability and operability, the following points must be adequately taken into consideration with respect to bill receiving/dispensing boxes, which are mounted on the above-described bill receiving/dispensing machines. It is necessary for bill receiving/dispensing boxes to store and discharge bills in a state, in which as many as 2000 to 3000 bills are stored and store and discharge bent or broken bills generated during circulation and foreign bills having different paper quality. For such purposes, it is important (1) to stably hold various, many bills stored in an aligned state, (2) to surely conduct the stored bills to a separation mechanism section at the time of separating operation and let out the same, (3) to move bills having been stored in a direction away from a stack mechanism section at the time of stacking operation to ensure a storage space for bills to be stacked to align and stack bills, and (4) to enable a staff to align and set bills in a state, in which bills neither fall nor incline, when the staff charges bills in a storage section.
Meanwhile, with the above-described prior art, the reliability of machine, there has not been taken into consideration reliability of an installation, in particular, reliability when bills act when a large number of bills are handled and under unfavorable conditions in terms of circulation.
It is an object of the invention to provide a bill receiving/dispensing box capable of performing stable separating and stacking actions for a large number of bills and for bills under unfavorable condition due to circulation, and having a good operability, with which a staff charges bills in a storage section.
To attain the above object, the bill receiving/dispensing box in accordance with the invention comprises a stacking/separating mechanism connected to a bill conveying path outside of the bill receiving/dispensing box, and for storing bills in the bill receiving/dispensing box and separating bills from the bill receiving/dispensing box, and a push plate for supporting a side of stacked bills opposite to the stacking/separating mechanism, and for driving bills toward the stacking/separating mechanism when bill are to be separated, and keeping bills away from the stacking/separating mechanism to drive the same toward a storage space formed when bills are to be stacked. Also, the bill receiving/dispensing box comprises a bill guide adapted to abut against a side of stacked bills toward the stacking/separating mechanism, and for moving bills to a position, where a bill is conducted to the stacking/separating mechanism, when bills are to be separated, and keeping bills away from the stacking/separating mechanism to move the same to a position, where a storage space is formed, when bills are to be stacked. Further, the bill receiving/dispensing box employs a push plate and bill guide interlocking mechanism adapted to interlock with the push plate, which moves stacked bills toward and against the stacking/separating mechanism, when bills are to be separated, to move the bill guide to a position where a bill is conducted to the stacking/separating mechanism, and adapted to interlockingly drive the push plate and the bill guide so as to interlock with the push plate, which keeps stacked bills away from the stacking/separating mechanism to drive the same to a position where a storage space is formed, when bills are to be separated.